Scientists have unravelled long-standing mystery about feline world. Geneticists from Kyushu University in Japan have discovered why eight out of ten ginger cats are male. Dr Hiroyuki Sasaki discovered that mutation in X chromosome is responsible for previously unknown "orange gene". Dr Sasaki said: "Identifying the gene has been longtime dream, so it's a joy to have finally cracked it." The gene is responsible for pigmentation in skin of animals. Male mammals have an X and Y chromosome. If male cat's X chromosome has the gene, it will be ginger. Because a female cat has two X chromosomes, the gene needs to be present in both for cat to be orange. This is less likely to happen.
Dr Sasaki and his colleagues' research has been published in journal "Current Biology". In study, researchers analysed DNA of 18 cats. Ten of cats had ginger fur. The researchers found that all of the ginger cats had gene mutation called ARHGAP36. The non-ginger cats did not have this. Dr Sasaki said cat lovers associated fur colour with personality traits. He wrote: "Many cat owners swear by idea that different coat colours and patterns are linked with different personalities. There's no scientific evidence for this yet, but it's intriguing idea, and one I'd love to explore further." He said ginger cats may share particular behavioural characteristics because most of them are male.
